1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for separating mixed fluids and, more particularly, for separating oil from a mixture of water and oil.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The basic problem to which the present invention is directed is that of separating or extracting one fluid from a mixture of a plurality of fluids. A more specific problem also addressed is that of removing petroleum products deposited upon an open body of water, i.e., separating out petroleum products from water.
Petroleum products may be deposited on an open body of water as the result of leakage from an underwater oil well or from the rinsing of a vessel's fuel tanks. Regardless of the cause or the particular composition of the petroleum product, the deposited petroleum product is extremely harmful to the environment and the potential damage increases the longer the spill is allowed to remain on the open water because of the likelihood that the spilled substance will travel and spread to increase the area of contaminated beaches and wildlife areas.
Presently, such spills are cleaned up by soaking up the petroleum product with an absorbent material such as straw or manually removing it from contaminated beaches and land where it has washed ashore. The first method is slow, inefficient, and expensive. The second method is also time consuming and expensive, does nothing to prevent the offshore portion of the spill from contaminating other beaches, and cannot undo the catastrophic effect that mere contact with petroleum products has upon fowl and other wildlife habitating or feeding in shore areas.
The present invention provides for the rapid separation of a fluid from a mixture of fluids and thus, when applied to the problem of cleaning up an oil spill, reduces the potential for environmental damage by providing for the fast and efficient separation and removal of petroleum products from an open body of water.